The Encyclopedia of Walt Disney's Animated Characters: From Mickey Mouse to Hercules by
John Grant

Walt Disney Character Description of Vanessa from "The Little Mermaid" (1989)

When Ursula adopts human guise in order to ensnare Eric romantically (with the aid of Ariel's hostage voice), she takes for herself the name Vanessa. Vanessa so strongly resembles Ariel that it is easier to note the differences than the similarities. Some are superficial - the hair colour, for example - and others much more fundamental. A curious feature of Vanessa is that, even though Ariel is in theory still a little uncertain on her legs, Vanessa is actually a much clumsier mover - something that is particuarly noticeable in the scene where, witnessed through the porthole by Scuttle, Vanessa climbs up on her dressing table to admire herself in the mirror. (Her reflection, of course, shows her true self: we see the gloating, malicous, adipose face of Ursula's habitual form.)

The regal Mufasa, given life by the booming voice of James Earl Jones.

The Encyclopedia of Walt Disney's Animated Characters: From Mickey Mouse to Hercules by
John Grant

Walt Disney Character Description of Mufasa from "The Lion King" (1994)

With his great orange mane and his powerful physique, the first of the movie's two Lion Kings, Simba's father appears much as we might expect him to, and he is voiced appropriately in the deep tones of James Earl Jones. In a way, after the initial scene where Rafiki is presenting the new cub to the massed animals, we see Mufasa only from the viewpoint of the young Simba; he is not so much large as huge, and we have the feeling that he is the ruler not just of the Pride Lands but of the world. This feeling is reinforced by a selection of dialogue in which Mufasa tries to give his young son some idea of the responsibilities of kingship:

Mufasa: Look, Simba. Everything the light touches is our kingdom,
Simba: Wow.
Mufasa: A king's time as ruler rises and falls like the sun. One day, Simba, the sun will set on my time here and will rise with you as the new king.

The Encyclopedia of Walt Disney's Animated Characters: From Mickey Mouse to Hercules by
John Grant

Walt Disney Character Description of Baloo from "The Jungle Book" (1967)

It had been originally planned that Baloo should have no more than a cameo role, but the animators (Ollie Johnston was largely responsible for him) found Phill Harris's vocalization fascinating to work with and so in due course Baloo became one of the movie's major stars. Indeed, in terms of popularity and screen presence, he is the main star of The Jungle Book, eclipsing even Bagheera, whose role is much more fundamental to the story.
A big, blue-gray burly character, Baloo has adopted easy-goingness as the keystone of his life. According to Bagheera, who calls him a "jungle bum" and various worse names, Baloo has taken this to excess, and the panther is worried that Mowgli will follow in Baloo's path and become a disreputable pest of the jungle. The panther is probably right, but Baloo, despite his general fecklessness, proves to be a true friend to the little boy. His decisions may not always be admirable, and his friendship...